Bangladesh: Bird Flu in ANIMALS/POULTRY Nov/16/2007-Feb/6/2008

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" bgColor=#3366cc border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=updatetime align=middle>Sunday, February 3, 2008 06:16 AM GMT+06:00 </TD><TD class=volnum align=right width=100> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width=60> </TD><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=newspath></TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=4 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=newsdetails vAlign=top>

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Star Health​

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Red Alarm over Bird Flu
Better plan needed to prevent outbreak of epidemic

Md Rajib Hossain

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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Until recent outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of bird flu virus, many people thought the virus has gone away. But it has not really; it is still around. Experts say it was largely "dormant" in recent months. Now the virus returns with more strength and has become more widespread.

Ninety nine commercial and backyard poultry farms in 31 out of our 64 districts have reportedly been infected with the deadly virus so far and it continues to spread. Everyday new areas are found infected raising concern amongst government officials, farmers, scientists and the general people. Over 364000 chickens have been culled after detection of the virus in the country. Experts urged to take immediate steps to tackle the situation.

Last year, for the first time H5N1strain emerged as a threat. Experts urged to be prepared for an epidemic that could kill millions of the population and damage our poultry farms. But very few initiatives were taken since that time to prevent further outbreak and handle the emergency.

The virus is known to have infected nearly 335 people in 12 countries and killed 206 since 2003 worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Most of the human cases were linked with close contacts with sick birds. So far, no humans have tested positive in the country. But the people are at great risk as human cases of bird flu have generally been linked to the contact with infected poultry.

Bangladesh has 125,000 small and large poultry firms producing 250 million broilers and 6 billion eggs annually. About 4 million Bangladeshis are directly or indirectly associated with poultry farming.

Health experts fear that the H5N1 virus, if given enough opportunities, may develop the characteristics it needs to start another influenza pandemic. The virus has already met all prerequisites for the outbreak of a pandemic and gradually increases its ability to spread efficiently and sustainably among humans.

The virus can improve its transmissibility among humans through two principal mechanisms. The first is a ?reassortment? event, in which genetic material is exchanged between human and avian viruses during co-infection of a human or pig. Reassortment could result in a fully transmissible pandemic virus, announced by a sudden surge of cases with explosive spread.

The second mechanism is a more gradual process of adaptive mutation, whereby the capability of the virus to bind to human cells increases during subsequent infections of humans. Adaptive mutation, expressed initially as small clusters of human cases with some evidence of human-to-human transmission, would probably give the world some time to take defensive action, if detected sufficiently early. The virus may mutate or change into a form that passes easily from human to human, causing an epidemic that could spread very rapidly in our densely populated country.

?In many places dead chickens are discarded in open air rather than culled or burred and faeces of the infected birds loaded with the H5N1 virus are not disposed of properly and dumped in public places. It poses a great threat for the spread of the virus along with the migratory routes of wild waterfowl. If this continues, the outbreaks will also continue,? warned Dr Vidyut Kumar, Convener of Bird Flu Control Room. ?It is the backyard farms that pose a real danger more than the commercial ones. Proper awareness at individual level is very essential? he added.

Director of Instituted of Epidemiology, Disease control & Research (IEDCR), Mahmudur Rahman expressed that consumers should be aware of the risk of cross-contamination. When handling raw poultry or raw poultry products, persons involved in food preparation should wash their hands thoroughly and clean and disinfect surfaces in contact with the poultry products. Hand washing after handling any bird or sick chicken is very important and simply soap and hot water are sufficient for this purpose.

Consumers need to be sure that all parts of the poultry are fully cooked (no "pink" parts). Eggs also should be properly cooked (no "runny" yolks). The H5N1 virus is sensitive to heat. Normal temperatures used for cooking (700C in all parts of the food) will kill the virus.

Domestic ducks can now excrete large quantities of highly pathogenic virus without showing signs of illness, and are now acting as a "silent" reservoir of the virus, perpetuating transmission to other birds. This adds yet another layer of complexity to control efforts and removes the warning signal for humans to avoid risky behaviours.

In many places, poultry farms are placed over pond or lake and fish farming in same pond goes simultaneously. If these poultry are infected, it could spread the virus in the water by shedding the virus loaded faeces in underneath pond. It could devastate our entire bio-security, informed Mr Rahman.

However, fears of a new pandemic, which could claim millions of lives, have not been realised so far, even though the mortality rate of the disease among humans has risen above 60 percent.

Altogether, more than half of the laboratory-confirmed cases have been fatal. H5N1 avian influenza in humans is still a rare disease, but a severe one that must be closely watched and studied, particularly because of the potential of this virus to evolve in ways that could start a pandemic.:tiphat:
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=21712</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

25,000 chickens culledSunday, February 3, 2008 06:20 AM GMT+06:00

Unb, Dhaka


Livestock officials with the help of joint forces culled over 25,000 poultry and domestic fowls in Savar and Gopalganj since Friday night after detection of avian influenza at farms

In Savar, 1550 chickens of Rahman poultry Farm at Ashulia were culled on Friday night as the farm was detected with avian influenza virus infection.

Livestock officials yesterday culled around 22,000 chickens of eight other farms located within one kilometre of Rahman Poultry.

They culled 7,800 chickens of Dipa Poultry, 2500 of S A poultry, 3135 of Munnu and Muku Poultry, 2030 of Haji Poultry, 2200 of Tasmina Poultry, 1100 of Salam Poultry, 1400 of Jubair Poultry and 1150 of Happy Poultry.

In Gopalganj, over 1,600 domestic fowls were culled in the district town early yesterday.

Local Veterinary Hospital sources said two officials of the hospital examined the samples

of some dead chickens of the poultry farm belonging to M Abu Hossain of Thanapara area on Friday night and detected avian influenza.

Later, the livestock officials with the help of the law enforcers conducted a drive on 208 homesteads of the area in the early hours yesterday.

During the drive, some 762 chickens, 524 pigeons and 316 ducks were culled then buried,

Meanwhile, Jhenidah district administration yesterday decided to cull some 7,000 chickens at Shailakupa upazila headquarters after detection of avian influenza.

CCC ALLAYS FEAR
OUR correspondent from Chittagong reported that Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) yesterday allayed people's fears by beginning anti-viral spray at different kitchen markets around the city after the bird flu virus was found in a dead crow in the city.

The district administration has meanwhile urged all concerned to not panic, as there have been no reported cases of bird flu, also known as avian flu, infection at any poultry farm in the city or its outskirts.

In an emergency meeting the administration chalked up precautionary programme steps to contain he spread of the disease.

The administration has taken up different precautions in the face of the situation. It has set up checkpoints at the two entry points to the district -- Shubhapur Bridge at Feni and Mirsarai Police Station area -- to check entry of infected birds into the area.

Two control rooms have also been opened at the CCC Damapara office and DC office.

"Vircon" anti-viral was sprayed in various poultry shops in kitchen markets in 41 wards under the city yesterday, while more markets will be covered today.

CCC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) AKM Khairul Alam, District Livestock Officer Abdul Mannan, Civil Surgeon Md Jalal Uddin and other senior government officials were present at the meeting with DC Ashraf Shamim in the chair.:tiphat: http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=21776

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Bird flu panic grips Chittagong
Staff Correspondent . Chittagong
The port city of Chittagong was put on high alert to combat bird flu after some dead crows tested positive. The local administration swung into action with massive spraying of anti-virus liquid in the bazaars and dustbins from Saturday.
Bird flu virus were traced in some crows found dead recently at Agrabad in the city and tested in Dhaka, officials added.
Two control rooms were set up under the disaster management preparedness cell, the Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) and the district administration in a bid to monitor the bird flu situation, officials added.
The Deputy commissioner of Chittagong, Asraf Shameem, told New Age that Chittagong was brought under continuous surveillance after detection of bird flu virus in the dead crows.
He informed reporters that the bird flu virus has not yet been traced in any poultry farm here so far.
?After we got the test report on dead crows, we took it seriously. All officials and concerned bodies were immediately asked to take precautionary measures to check the outbreak of bird flu,? he claimed.
?We held an emergency meeting for two hours till 12pm on Friday night and decided to maintain strong vigilance in addition to other required measures,? he added.
?We asked all officials in the city and upazilas to start massive spraying in local bazaars and on dustbins to prevent the outbreak of bird flu,? he added.
?If the virus is traced in any poultry firm, immediate measures will be taken for culling the fowls. Efforts are on for round-the-clock vigilance in this regard,? he further said.
Meanwhile, the sale of poultry birds and eggs declined in the local bazaars after the bird flu panic gripped the city and adjoining areas, said market sources.
Our Kushtia correspondent said that nearly 6,000 poultry birds were buried on Saturday after nearly 5,000 died within a span of five days in the Kushtia Agro Hatchery and Poultry Farm at Barokhada under Sadar Upazila.
Samples were sent to Dhaka on Friday through district livestock office for being tested.
After extermination of affected fowls the rate of mortality in the farm has sharply fallen, claimed the farm owner Ataur Rahman on Saturday.
District Livestock Officer Ajay Kumar Roy told New Age that whether it was bird flu or anything else cannot be said until the government order comes. He could not confirm when the GO would come.
The livestock office has, in the meantime, banned the entrance and departure of any poultry birds or products to or from the farm, said the DLO. ?We are trying to combat the infection through our limited manpower,? he added.
Panic gripped the people in the areas adjacent to the farm as it is located within a village. No disinfection programme has so far been launched in the area as the GO is yet to come.
?I have supplied the workers with gloves and masks as precaution,? said the farm owner. :tiphat: http://www.newagebd.com/front.html#14

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: Pakistan - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 23+

Re: Pakistan - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 23+

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02020804/H5N1_Bangladesh_Isolation_Wards.html

Commentary http://www.recombinomics.com/feed.xml http://www.newsnow.co.uk/nn/Recombinomics

Isolation Wards Readied in Bangladesh

Recombinomics Commentary 17:27
February 2, 2008

The H5N1 strain has now spread to 34 out of Bangladesh's 64 districts, forcing police and livestock officials to slaughter 35,000 chickens in the past three days alone, officials said.

The government in Dhaka ordered major hospitals to set up isolation units to treat bird flu suspects.

"We've taken blood samples of 837 people and none have been found positive. We've also confined several people in their homes, while more than a thousand are under our watch," government spokesman Mahmudur Rahman said.

Health officials investigating bird flu cases called the situation "alarming" and getting worse every day.

The above comments describe a worsening situation in Bangladesh. The number of districts with confirmed H5N1 has risen dramatically in recent days (see satellite map here and here).

Although West Bengal media reports have emphasized the ending of their culling program, the lack of reported spread there is closely linked to the lack of testing. In addition to the spread in West Bengal, H5N1 was just confirmed in southern Pakistan near Karachi, and excessive deaths in multiple locations in India are being investigated.

Pakistan has also readied isolation wards in the Karachi area, and three farm workers are in isolation. Recent human cases in northern Pakistan have heightened concerns regarding human cases, including those that do not progress to pneumonia.

More detail on hospitalized patients and spread of H5N1 to new districts would be useful.

.

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Bird flu spreads in Bangladesh, port city on alert
03 Feb 2008 10:57:50 GMT
<!-- 03 Feb 2008 10:57:50 GMT ## for search indexer, do not remove -->Source: Reuters

<!-- AN5.0 article title end --><SCRIPT language=JavaScript src="/bin/js/article.js"></SCRIPT></SPAN><INPUT id=CurrentSize type=hidden value=13 name=CurrentSize> <!-- Bird flu spreads in Bangladesh, port city on alert --><!-- Reuters -->DHAKA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Bird flu has spread to three more districts of Bangladesh, the livestock department said on Sunday, taking the number of affected districts to more than half of the country's 64 districts.
The latest outbreaks were reported in southwestern Gopalganj, northeastern Sylhet and northern Mymensingh district, officials said.
The port city of Chittagong was put on high alert after some dead crows tested positive for the H5N1 virus, local officials said.
Officials said the government was taking measures to contain the spread of the disease, but ignorance among millions of farmers across the impoverished country remained a stumbling block.
Despite a government drive to burn or buy the dead birds, many farmers and backyard poultry breeders continue to ignore warnings, officials said.
"More than 200,000 volunteers are visiting rural households and educating people to report dead or sick birds, safe disposal of poultry waste and other safe health practices," said Mushtaque Ahmed, senior scientific officer at the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research.
Touching or eating sick poultry is the common way to become infected by the bird flu virus that has killed more than 220 people globally since late 2003.
So far no human infection has been reported in Bangladesh, though some 4 million people are involved in poultry farming across the country.
The neighbouring Indian state of West Bengal has put 26 people in isolation with bird flu symptoms after the most serious outbreak of the disease in poultry.
(Reporting by Ruma Paul; Writing by Anis Ahmed; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/DHA331879.htm
<!-- news ## for search indexer, do not remove -->

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Commentary

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02030802/H5N1_Bangladesh_Explodes.html

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Warden Message

February 3, 2008

The first officially announced Avian Influenza (AI) outbreak in Bangladesh occurred in February 2007 near the capital Dhaka; since then the virus has spread, mostly to northern districts with multiple small outbreaks reported every month. Thus far there have been no reports of deaths of poultry near the border with West Bengal, where very recent outbreaks have occurred. There are no reported cases of human illness.
All U.S. citizens should consider their medium-term plans in the unlikely event that Avian Influenza ever becomes a virulent human disease, or pandemic flu. Pandemic planning information is available at www.pandemicflu.gov. For further information on avian influenza, the U.S. Embassy suggests that you consult the U.S. Department of State's Avian Influenza Fact Sheet at http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/health/health_1181.html, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) web site at http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/index.htm. World Health Organization (WHO) guidance related to Avian Influenza is available at http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/en/.
The U.S. Embassy in Dhaka can be reached at (880-2) 885-5500 during regular hours and for after-hours emergencies. Our website address is dhaka.usembassy.gov. For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where the current Country Specific Information, Current Travel Warning, Current Travel Alerts, Worldwide Caution other Travel Alerts and Travel Warnings can be found.
Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada; or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are available from 8:00 am to 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
U.S. Embassy:tiphat:
http://dhaka.usembassy.gov/warden_message_feb03_08.html

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

I have to say that message was full of inaccuracies. "Thus far there have been no reports of deaths of poultry near the border with West Bengal, where very recent outbreaks have occurred. There are no reported cases of human illness."...:tiphat:

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=content01>Bangladesh Poultry Industry Hit by Bird Flue Faces Severe Crisis</TD></TR><TR><TD height=45><TABLE cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=5 width="100%" bgColor=#cccccc><TBODY><TR><TD class=content02 bgColor=#e8e8e8> 2008-02-03 21:29:52 Xinhua</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE class=content03 id=dstTable cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD>Bangladesh's fast growing poultry industry is now facing a severe threat of deadly avian influenza as livestock workers had to cull more than 51,000 chickens, ducks and pigeons in the past 24 hours.

The industry has culled more than 423,000 fowls since March last year as the bird flue affected the country's 34 out of 64 districts, the control room on bird flu under the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry said on Sunday.

"I must say the symptom is alarming," DR Biduit Kanti Das, an official of the Fisheries and Livestock Ministry, told Xinhua over phone Sunday. He said if the current trend continues the poultry industry's existence would be threatened.

More than 100 billion taka (about 1.43 billion U.S. dollars) were invested in this growing poultry sector employing several million people.

Already many private poultry farms were shut down. Panicked people stopped buying chickens, bringing down the prices of chickens in markets across the country.

DR Das said, "we have taken decision to declare new affected areas as disaster areas halting movement of fowls within 10 km radius" as a strict precautionary step.

According to statistics, the number of poultry in the country is 183.45 million. The number of poultry farms is about 130,000. Of them 50 percent are commercial farms and the rest 50 percent is backyard farms.

There is a suspicion that Avian Influenza might have entered Bangladesh from neighboring Indian state of West Bengal. But, DR Das said the government banned poultry imports from India since last year following the outbreak of virus in that country.

"But you cannot rule it out that virus did not come from neighboring countries as we have borders with India and Myanmar Defying the government ban, people may import chickens or eggs from neighboring countries," he said.

President of Bangladesh Chapter of World Poultry Science Association Moshiur Rahman was quoted by private news agency UNB as saying, "Thousands of poultry farmers have been compelled to shut down their farms following a sharp fall in the prices of poultry products after the reported attack by avian influenza."

He said now this sector should be declared as emergency sector to save millions of farmers.

Rahman said, "No one has so far died after eating poultry eggs or chicks, but people have got panicked after the media reports on outbreak of bird flu virus among poultry chicks in Bangladesh."

He said poultry traders have set up 11 check posts across the country from where medicines are being sprayed on poultry eggs and chicks before they are sent to markets.

"Only setting up of check posts or spraying medicines on the poultry products or culling the poultry birds cannot help," he said. "People must also be made aware that avian influenza will not inflict them if they eat chicks and eggs after boiling them adequately."

According to statistics, in recent years the poultry industry has been growing at an annual rate of about 20 percent, recording a turnover of 1.25 to 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2006. But industry analysts estimate that the 2007 figure may be below the figure of 2006 because of the bird flu.:tiphat: http://english.cri.cn/2947/2008/02/03/902@320283.htm</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

1,300 fowls culled in Thakurgaon

Our Correspondent, Dinajpur


At least 1,300 domestic fowls were culled and 199 eggs were destroyed in Haripur upazila under Thakurgaon district on Saturday night after bird flu was detected in a poultry farm in the area.

According to district livestock officials, poultry that died in Birhai village under Haripur upazila of Thakurgaon were tested and found to be carrying the avian flu virus.

Since then Haripur upazila administrative officials have made all-out preparations to combat the situation. They culled at least 1300 domestic fowls and destroyed 199 eggs within the one-kilometer radius from the place in Birhai village where the infected bird was first detected.

Our Chittagong correspondent reports that more crows have been found dead in the port city over the last few days including over one hundred crows at Dewanhat yesterday.

Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) is continuing its awareness programme. Yesterday they started oral announcements in different areas warning people about bird flu and what to do if they find any birds dead.

Four more control rooms have been opened at the offices of district administration, CCC, livestock department and civil surgeon.

Meanwhile, officials have collected sample of dead poultry from a farm in city's Bakalia area and sent it to Feni for laboratory tests, sources said.

The 100 dead crows were found at CSD Food Godown at Dewanhat Mansurabad area under Double Mooring Police Station. A labourer working at the place said that crows have dying here for the last ten days.

BSS adds that special assistant to the chief adviser for the ministry of fisheries and livestock Manik Lal Samaddar yesterday said that the government is considering increasing the compensation money for poultry infected by avian flu.

http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=21938

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Bird flu update: Culling of domestic fowls continues


Staff Reporter

Around 1,290 domestic fowls were culled and 199 eggs destroyed in Birhali village in Pirganj upazila in Rangpur yesterday after the detection of avian influenza, virus of bird flu.

In Bagerhat, some 900 chickens died at a poultry farm at Pashchim Saralia village in Morelganj upazila yesterday. The dead chickens were dumped under the soil.

Bimal Chandra Das, district livestock officer at Rangpur, said 944 chickens, 110 ducks, 11 pigeons and 21 other birds were culled when the bird flu was detected in Pirganj upazila.

Border area adjacent to the state of West Bengal has been sealed off as a precaution measure.

Germicides are being sprayed on the vehicles, particularly to chicken and eggs carrying vehicles, at different check posts to make those free from germs, according to the Livestock Department.

The check posts have also been set up in Goreya, Boda, Debiganj, Pirganj, Setabganj and 29-mile areas, it said.

The district administration also asked the BDR to keep vigil on the border so that chicken and eggs could not be smuggled into the country from India.

In Bagerhat, some dead crows were also found littered on the roadside of the district town.

The Livestock Department was yet to confirm the reason behind the deaths of the fowls but sent the samples of the dead crows and chicken to Dhaka and Barisal for laboratory test.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/02/04/news0758.htm

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Tk 8,000cr poultry industry at stake




Staff Reporter



Poultry sector leaders find government's ineptitude as the main reason behind the outbreak of bird flu in an epidemic form that has recently put the Tk 8 thousand crore industry at stake.

"The government policy do not allow private sector to import any antiviral or take any preventive measure against bird flu. The livestock department of the government is deliberately destroying the poultry sector," said Dr MM Khan, Technical Adviser of the Bangladesh Poultry Industries Association yesterday while talking to this correspondent.

Import of antiviral or diagnosis by the private sector is banned from the very beginning. The government is not listening to or taking any of the measures recommended by the industry leaders.

Dr MM Khan said the livestock department have not conducted any survey in the last three years, did not educate or raise awareness among the poultry owners and never diagnosed to check if any virus attack was in the offing.

He said nearly 50 lakh people were involved in the poultry sector. In the last three years half of the total 1.5-lakh farms have closed down due to attack of avian influenza and other bacteria. A number of workforces of the sector have already become jobless due to the closure.

Secretary General of the association Syed Abu Siddique said nearly 100 farms were affected by bird flu and so far 3.5 lakh fowls were culled across the country.

He said the livestock department is not working properly. There is no monitoring system especially in the upzila and the remote areas.

The livestock department should have more vigilance so that attack of any virus or bacteria can be prevented from the very beginning, Siddique said.

He said the industry is passing through a very critical moment. More effective steps are needed from the government side to save the sector.

The secretary general informed that nearly 30 teams of the association were working across the country for the last four years to raise awareness among the stakeholders.

He also said the poultry sector can only be saved if both the government and private sector work hand in hand.

Meanwhile, the Special Assistant to the CA for Fisheries and Livestock Ministry Manik Lal Samaddar recently requested owners of poultry farms to come forward to tackle the situation saying that it is not possible to overcome the situation alone by the government.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/02/04/news0753.htm

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Precaution beefed up as bird flu scare grips port city


Chittagong Correspondent



Though the avian influenza virus, what causes 'Bird Flu' among fowls, has been detected in a number of crows died in the port city, there is still no direct evidence of the virus infection in poultry.

Presence of the virus among some of the dead crows in the port city prompted the district administration, Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) and the livestock department to revive high alert.

The district administration and the departments concerned here in the port city sitting together over and over for working out the strategy to tackle the probable threat to the public health.

"We've drawn a comprehensive precautionary scheme across the district to resist spread of the virus "Deputy Commissioner (DC) Ashraf Shamim told the reporters on last night.

"Bird flu has been found in the dead crows, but the virus has not been found in any chicken or eggs anywhere in the district," the DC asserted without referring to the quantity of poultry and poultry eggs screened for the virus.

Chittagong district livestock officer Abdul Mannan confirmed that no bird flu virus had yet been detected in any chicken or duck in Chittagong.

As part of the preventive measures, people have been advised not to touch the crows, poultry birds and fowls dying

without known reason. The district administration, however, refrained from asking people to stop eating poultry eggs.

Two check posts have been set up at Shubhapur Bridge and Baroierhat of Mirsarai Police Station to strictly control the entry of poultry and eggs from outside the district. Two control rooms have been set up to monitor the situation.

Police today stopped a lorry laden with poultry eggs near Mirsarai and sent the eggs to quarantine.After an emergency meeting this afternoon, the CCC today sprayed disinfectant fluid at the city's poultry markets.

Initiatives have also been taken to monitor all poultry farms and raise awareness among the workers and owners while district administration had directed upazila officers to ensure the cleanliness of markets and spray disinfectant at the retail outlets of poultry birds.

http://nation.ittefaq.com/issues/2008/02/04/news0752.htm

 

[Treyfish]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

<TABLE cellSpacing=2 cellPadding=2 width="99%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=2>Bird flu detected in crows in Ctg
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top colSpan=2>
The fast-spreading avian influenza has also been detected in crows in the port city of Chittagong, posing a fresh threat to its booming poultry industry.

When contacted Saturday, officials at Chittagong Livestock Department confirmed the presence of bird flu among crows in Chittagong as they received laboratory reports from Dhaka and Feni Friday night.

According to sources, several hundred crows were found dead in a pond in the city?s Agrabad area during the last week.

District livestock officials collected samples of some the dead crows Thursday and sent those to Dhaka and Feni for laboratory tests.

As the test reports reached the authorities here Friday night, the district administration immediately held an emergency meeting and took several decisions to protect poultry farms from the deadly virus which has taken an epidemic turn in nearly 33 districts.

As per decisions of the meeting, notices have been issued to all upazila and pourasava administrations asking them to remain alert to tackle any emergency situation.

The disaster management committee of the Chittagong City Corporation also sat in a meeting this evening with its chief executive Khairul Alam in the chair. The meeting decided to immediately spray disinfectant at every poultry farm of the city.

District livestock officer Abdul Mannan told UNB that they did not receive any report of death of poultry bird in the district till this afternoon.

He urged the people not to get panicked but remain alert to check the outbreak of bird flu.

Around 22,000 chickens culled at Savar

Around 22,000 chickens of eight poultry farms were culled in Savar Saturday after detection of Avian Influenza.

Livestock officials conducted the culling operation with the help of joint forces.

Sources said as some chickens of Rahman poultry farm of Kuturia at Ashulia died on Wednesday the farm owner sent the sample of dead chickens to Livestock Research center in the uapzila.

As the disease was detected, 1550 chickens of the farm were culled on Friday night.

Livestock authority culled today around 22,000 chickens of eight other farms located within one kilometer of Rahman Poultry.

Those included 7,800 chickens of Dipa poultry, 2500 of S A poultry, 3135 of Munnu and Muku poultry, 2030 of Haji poultry, 2200 of Tasmina poultry, 1100 of Salam poultry, 1400 of Jubair poultry and 1150 of Happy poultry.

Bird flu still spreading in Bangladesh

An Indian state said it had brought the country's worst ever bird flu outbreak under control on Saturday, just as neighbouring Bangladesh reported the virus was spreading.

The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu had been detected in 13 of 19 districts in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal since the outbreak began in mid- January.

The state's Animal Resource Development Minister Anisur Rahaman told AFP that health workers expected to complete the culling of three million poultry by late Saturday.

"We have so far culled nearly 2.9 million poultry since January 14," when the outbreak -- India's third and worst -- was confirmed, Rahaman said.

He added that the "next plan is to disinfect thousands of backyard poultry yards where culling has been done."

The state government was taking all possible steps to stop the spread of bird flu to humans, he said.

Humans typically catch bird flu by coming into direct contact with infected poultry, but experts fear the H5N1 strain may mutate into a form easily transmissible between people.

"All culling workers have been asked to stay for at least 10 days in hospital to take the full course of (antiviral drug) Tamiflu and burn clothes worn during culling," Rahaman said.

At least 700 were already in hospital taking Tamiflu, recommended by the World Health Organisation as a first line of defence against the virus, Rahaman said.

No cases of humans catching bird flu have yet been reported in India or Bangladesh. But in Indonesia on Friday, a 31-year-old woman died of the virus, bringing the toll to 102 in the nation worst hit by the illness.

"If anyone has a cold or fever we are sending his blood sample for tests," Rahaman added.

Once the culling operations were completed, more people would be admitted to hospital to take Tamiflu under supervision, he said.

Neighbouring Assam state ordered a cull in villages bordering West Bengal following suspicious poultry deaths. And Haryana, next to capital New Delhi, has sent dead bird samples for testing.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh slaughtered tens of thousands of chickens on Saturday as four more districts reported detecting bird flu.

"The disease is spreading," livestock department chief Sunil Chandra Ghosh said, insisting authorities had the situation under control.

The H5N1 strain has now spread to 34 out of Bangladesh's 64 districts, forcing police and livestock officials to slaughter 35,000 chickens in the past three days alone, officials said.

The government in Dhaka ordered major hospitals to set up isolation units to treat bird flu suspects.

"We've taken blood samples of 837 people and none have been found positive. We've also confined several people in their homes, while more than a thousand are under our watch," government spokesman Mahmudur Rahman said.

Health officials investigating bird flu cases called the situation "alarming" and getting worse every day.

"There's a huge lack of awareness in the countryside. People are throwing away dead chickens to open fields, canals and ponds. Crows which have eaten the cadavers are dying by the hundreds," a health officer told AFP.

The disease was first detected in Bangladesh last February near the capital Dhaka. It was almost dormant by late 2007, but made a forceful comeback in January this year.

Over 1,600 domestic fowls culled in Gopalganj

Over 1,600 domestic fowls were culled in the Gopalganj district town early Saturday after the detection of avian influenza.

Local Veterinary Hospital sources said two officials of the hospital examined the samples.

Of the chickens of the farm of one M Abu Hossain of Thanapara area on Friday night and detected avian influenza.

Later, the livestock officials with the help of district and police administrations conducted a drive to 208 homesteads of the area from Friday midnight to 5am Saturday.

During the drive, some 762 chickens, 524 pigeons and 316 ducks were culled buried underneath the ground.

Meanwhile, the district administration today (Saturday) decided to cull some 7,000 chickens in Shailakupa upazila headquarters in Jhenidah district after detection of avian influenza. :tiphat:
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http://www.bangladeshinfo.com/news/other_news_head.php?othid=44872

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Commentary

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02040801/H5N1_Chittagong_Crows.html

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Bird flu spreads in Bangladesh, compensation to rise

Mon Feb 4, 2008 10:16am GMT
DHAKA (Reuters) - Bird flu has spread to two more districts in Bangladesh, taking the number of affected districts to 36, a livestock official said on Monday, as the government pledged to raise compensation to farmers for culled poultry.
The latest cases were reported in southern Bagerhat and western Kushtia districts while the virus has re-emerged in several others, an official in the livestock department said.
More than half Bangladesh's 64 districts are affected by bird flu which has been able to spread, health experts say, partly due to ignorance among millions of farmers in the poor nation.
The official said the interim government had decided to increase the amount of compensation for poultry farmers to encourage them to report and cull sick birds. The official didn't say what the increase would be.
Farmers currently receive between 60 and 80 taka ($0.87 to $1.17) for each culled chicken, which they say is inadequate. Farmers get 60 taka for each duck.
"The authorities are also considering lifting restrictions on paying compensation," the official said. At present, poultry owners receive compensation for up to 5,000 culled chickens.
In the country's second biggest city, Chittagong, officials stepped up surveillance after the virus was detected in dead crows.
Pointing to a lack of awareness about the danger of the disease, a local newspaper on Monday printed a photograph of a man, wearing no mask and holding a stick in his bare hands, sifting through dead crows in the port city.
According to media reports, Chittagong officials said they knew of no bird flu cases in any of the city's poultry farms and wondered how to get rid of the crows that apparently flew from other districts carrying the virus.
Despite a government drive to burn or bury dead birds, many farmers and backyard poultry breeders continue to ignore warnings, officials said.
Touching or eating sick poultry is the common way to become infected by the H5N1 bird flu virus that has killed more than 220 people globally since late 2003.
So far no human infection has been reported in Bangladesh, though about 4 million people are involved in poultry farming.
The H5N1 virus, first detected in Bangladesh in March last year, was quickly brought under control through aggressive measures including culling, but follow-up monitoring eased in later months prompting the disease to reappear, experts say.
"It was poor monitoring by the authorities and lack of efforts and awareness by poultry owners that led to the re-emergence of the killer virus in late 2007," said one official at a poultry zone near Dhaka, who asked not to be identified.
(Reporting by Ruma Paul; Writing by Anis Ahmed; Editing by Katie Nguyen)

http://uk.reuters.com/articlePrint?articleId=UKDHA33187920080204

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

<TABLE class=lan18 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="97%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=hei22 vAlign=bottom height=25>More than 1,500 fowls culled in Bangladesh
</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#ffffff height=4></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="50%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="97%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD width="48%">www.chinaview.cn

2008-02-04 18:10:42 </TD><TD class=hui12 align=middle width="26%"> </TD><TD class=hui12 align=middle width="12%">

Print</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="80%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD height=20></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=lt14 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="97%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=lt14>



Special report: Global fight against bird flu
DHAKA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Livestock <!--ADV_CONTENT-->workers Monday culled more than 1,500 chickens, ducks and pigeons in Bangladesh's southwestern district of Jhenaidah, about 130 km southwest of Dhaka, as bird flu battered the country's poultry industry.
An official at bird flu control room of the livestock ministry told Xinhua Monday that some 1,507 fowls were culled at Pativila village in Maheshpur sub-district of Jhenaidah district after report of 222 chicken died from the virus.
With this new culling, some 428,953 fowls were destroyed in the country's 34 districts since March last year.
The bird flu has threatened the country's growing poultry industry which has more than 100 billion taka (about 1.43 billion U.S. dollars) investment and employment of several million people mostly in rural areas.
Already many private poultry farms were shut down. Panicked people stopped buying chickens, bringing down the prices of chickens in local markets.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to raise the amount of compensation for the country's affected poultry farm owners.
Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Manik Lal Samaddar who is in charge of Fisheries and Livestock Ministry poultry asked farm owners not to remove poultry birds from the affected farms without informing the local administration, as the government willprovide compensation to the affected poultry farm owners soon.
He ordered district administrations and farm owners to spray germicides to poultry birds carrying vehicles at every entry points to make those free from germs.

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/04/content_7566495.htm

 

[HenryN]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="98%" align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=title width="100%">Bird flu panic in Bangladesh </TD></TR><TR><TD class=body vAlign=top width="100%"><!--body text-->DHAKA: Bird flu has spread to three more districts in Bangladesh, taking the number of affected districts to 37, officials said yesterday, as the government pledged to raise compensation to farmers for culled poultry.
The latest cases were reported in southern Bagerhat and western Kushtia districts while the virus has re-emerged in several others, an official in the livestock department said.
Health workers began culling in southwestern Jhenaidah district after more than 200 chicken died from the H5N1 bird flu virus, local officials said.
More than half of Bangladesh's 64 districts are affected by bird flu which has been able to spread, health experts say, partly due to ignorance among millions of farmers.
The official said the interim government had decided to increase the amount of compensation for poultry farmers to encourage them to report and cull sick birds. The official didn't say what the increase would be.
Farmers currently receive between 60 and 80 taka (350-450 fils) for each culled chicken, which they say is inadequate.
In the country's second biggest city, Chittagong, officials stepped up surveillance after the virus was detected in dead crows.
Separately, Pakistani authorities confirmed a fresh outbreak of bird flu at a poultry farm on the outskirts of Karachi, the second case in four days in the country's biggest city, a government official said.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=207847&Sn=WORL&IssueID=30322
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[AlaskaDenise]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Commentary

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02030802/H5N1_Bangladesh_Explodes.html

Commentary http://www.recombinomics.com/feed.xml http://www.newsnow.co.uk/nn/Recombinomics

H5N1 Explodes in Bangladesh

Recombinomics Commentary 13:25
February 3, 2008

The latest outbreaks were reported in southwestern Gopalganj, northeastern Sylhet and northern Mymensingh district, officials said.
The port city of Chittagong was put on high alert after some dead crows tested positive for the H5N1 virus, local officials said.

The above comments describe the dramatic spread of H5N1 across Bangladesh (see satellite map here and here). The confirmed cases extend from northern districts bordering Meghalya, down to the southern port city of Chittagong.

Once again H5N1 has been confirmed in dead crows. The finding of the crows in the heart of Chittagong generated panic there, but the breadth of the confirmed cases is consistent with earlier media reports indicating bird flu in Bangladesh was much more widespread than reported.

Although adjacent West Bengal is finishing culling of 3,000,000 birds, the limited testing in the areas being culled suggest more H5n1 will be found in West Bengal.

Consistent with the above, adjacent regions have started precautionary culls, and regions districts adjacent to West Bengal have also been sealed from the remainder of India.

However, the confirmed H5N1 outbreaks in Pakistan suggest that the border sealing efforts will fail.


.

 

[AlaskaDenise]

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Re: BANGLADESH: Return of the bird flu threat

Commentary

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02040801/H5N1_Chittagong_Crows.html

Commentary http://www.recombinomics.com/feed.xml http://www.newsnow.co.uk/nn/Recombinomics

Dead Crows Cause Panic in Chittagong Bangladesh

Recombinomics Commentary 13:25
February 3, 2008

The port city of Chittagong was put on high alert to combat bird flu after some dead crows tested positive.

100 dead crows were found at CSD Food Godown at Dewanhat Mansurabad area under Double Mooring Police Station

several hundred crows were found dead in a pond in the city?s Agrabad area during the last week

The above comments come from various media reports on the dead crows in the Bangladesh port city of Chittagong. Although government reports indicate no H5N1 has been found in poultry in the city, the H5N1 positive crows have caused panic in the residents (see satellite maps here and here).

The dead crows are serving as canaries in the coal mine, signifying significant problems in the area. Bangladesh has confirmed H5N1 in crows in multiple locations from the port city in the south, to Dinajpur in the north, where they were literally falling from trees.

Dead crows have also been H5N1 confirmed in Pakistan, and are found in association with H5N1 confirmed poultry in India, although India has yet to confirm that the dead wild birds, including crows, are H5N1 positive.

The repeated reports of dead crows in the region highlight the difficulties in control H5N1 spread by sealing borders. The crows signal infections in other wild birds, including migratory birds, which also have never been confirmed in India.

The residents in Chittagong understand the danger associated with the dead crows, even if poultry in the city has not tested positives.

The dramatic spread of H5N1 in Bangaldesh, India, and Pakistan remain a cause for concern, government lab tests notwithstanding.


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